[In yesterday’s post, I spoke of the importance of spiritual exercise, using the metaphor of God’s gymnasium. As a pastor and counselor of 25 years, it grieves me that so many Christians think that this daily discipline is optional.]
In God’s Gymnasium, you will become weaker, not stronger.
In God’s Gymnasium, you will become weaker, not stronger.
The result of exercising yourself in GOD'S GYMNASIUM is the opposite of what will happen to you at 24-Hour Fitness!—where the purpose is to become stronger. In the spiritual realm, God’s training regimen is to make you weaker. Let me explain.
Our natural desire is to become stronger in our in self-esteem, self-confidence, and competence. In secular psychology, this is called EGO-STRENGTH. Ego-strength is considered a ‘good’ thing (by secular psychologists). In God’s Gymnasium our ego-strength is exposed. Conversely, the Holy Spirit shows us how weak and unable we are to live holy lives. The intent of God’s training, then, is to weaken (and ultimately destroy) our self-life, and make us stronger in spirit (God-reliant; God-dependent).
Before his conversion, Paul was a naturally gifted man, esteeming himself highly. But Paul learned that “[God’s] strength is perfected in [our] weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). To the self-congratulating Corinthians, Paul says God has “chosen the weak things of this world to shame the things that are strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27).
If you do not visit God’s Gymnasium regularly, you are in peril of thinking you are stronger than you really are. You are in danger of self-reliance and self-sufficiency. Through daily exercising our spirit through Bible study and meditation, we are humbled and broken of self-strength. And we learn how to exchange our strength for His.
Isaiah says:
“He gives power to those who are tired and worn out; he offers strength to the weak. Even youths will become exhausted, and young men will give up. But those who wait on the LORD [in God’s Gymnasium] will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint” (40:29-31).
And finally, listen to the words of the prophet Joel (3:10):
Our natural desire is to become stronger in our in self-esteem, self-confidence, and competence. In secular psychology, this is called EGO-STRENGTH. Ego-strength is considered a ‘good’ thing (by secular psychologists). In God’s Gymnasium our ego-strength is exposed. Conversely, the Holy Spirit shows us how weak and unable we are to live holy lives. The intent of God’s training, then, is to weaken (and ultimately destroy) our self-life, and make us stronger in spirit (God-reliant; God-dependent).
Before his conversion, Paul was a naturally gifted man, esteeming himself highly. But Paul learned that “[God’s] strength is perfected in [our] weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). To the self-congratulating Corinthians, Paul says God has “chosen the weak things of this world to shame the things that are strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27).
If you do not visit God’s Gymnasium regularly, you are in peril of thinking you are stronger than you really are. You are in danger of self-reliance and self-sufficiency. Through daily exercising our spirit through Bible study and meditation, we are humbled and broken of self-strength. And we learn how to exchange our strength for His.
Isaiah says:
“He gives power to those who are tired and worn out; he offers strength to the weak. Even youths will become exhausted, and young men will give up. But those who wait on the LORD [in God’s Gymnasium] will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint” (40:29-31).
And finally, listen to the words of the prophet Joel (3:10):
“Let the weak say I am Strong."
Greg,
ReplyDeleteThe picture you present of going to the gym to get weaker connects with me. I was able to build up my small frame into a substantial muscular image in my own college days and was quite proud of my accomplishments. Thirty years have passed and the discipline and regimen for maintaining my physique has not followed me very well. Time and the distractions of life have had their cummulative effect.
But my training in how to build muscle mass has carried over into my spiritual life. There is always room for more discipline, however, and I am truly grateful for this blog as it is a place of prompting in my daily devotions alongside of the study and meditation of Scripture and waiting in God's presence for His voice of illumination and fellowship.
Stan
Good to have you back, Stan. Thanks for the comment and encouragement. You may know that I have taken this from a chapter in ML Jones book Spiritual Depression, a chapter called "God's Gymnasium."
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